MPA/MPS Press Releases

Contact:
Jackie Hester, VP, Marketing Officer
The Citizen’s Bank
601.389.3333

The Citizens Bank Named A Top Bank In Nation

PHILADELPHIA - In documents released earlier this week, The Citizens Bank was named a Top 200 Bank in
the United States by U.S. BankerMagazine. The rating was based on the past three years’ average Return On Equity,
an industry standard which measures an institutions ability to create profitability based on its corporate net worth.
The Citizens Bank was the top-rated bank inMississippi, coming in at number 99 nationally. The performance review
included all community banks and thrift institutions in the nation.
U.S. Banker’sEditor-In-Chief Alan Kline, who summarized the findings, noted “a couple of years ago, a threeyear
average return on equity of 10 percent would have been seen as subpar. By today’s standards, though, a 10 percent
ROE is more than respectable.” The article detailed The Citizens Bank’s performance by reflecting a three-year
return on average equity exceeding 10.5 percent. The bank manages more than $840 million in total assets and generated
more than $7 million in net income for the year concluding December 31, 2009.
“We consider it an honor to be named in the Top 100 community banks in America,” said GregMcKee, President
and CEO of Citizens Bank. “But of greater importance in today’s economy, it’s important for our customers to take
great confidence in our bank and the manner in which we operate.” In addition to The Citizens Bank’s rating in U.S.
Banker, it is also rated a 5-Star Bank by Bauer Financial Services, a leading bank ratings firm located in Coral Gables,
Florida. Bauer Financial pores through the financial reports of all banks across the country, with only a small percentage
earning its highest 5-Star rating, placing these elite banks among the strongest, most secure banks in the United
States.
“We take fiscal integrity very seriously,” McKee explained. “The economic problems facing our nation began as
the isolated problems of a few Wall Street institutions, but the trickle-down effect touched the lives of virtually all
families and businesses from coast to coast, but we have continued to maintain time-honored principles in our lending efforts, and as a result we’ve weathered the storm in a strong and secure way.”
“We have been affected to the degree that our customers have been affected, certainly,” he continued. “But our
guiding mission is to provide each person who relies on us with a bank that is financially strong and safe. Being
named a Top 100 bank in America is a testament to that, and we’re grateful to our customers for the opportunity to
have earned this recognition.”
The next-highest Mississippi-based bank named in the list was Merchants & Marines Bancorp, Inc., of
Pascagoula, which came in at number 109 of the Top 200. The entire list of the Top 200 Banks is available online at
the U.S. Bankers magazine website at www.americanbanker.com/usb_issues.
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MISSISSIPPI SIERRA CLUB
921 North Congress Street
Jackson, MS 39202

For Immediate Release
May 26, 2010

Contact:
Louie Miller, 601-624-3503
Robert Wiygul 228-990-1228

COMMISSIONERS’ FLIP FLOP ON KEMPER COSTS HARMS RATEPAYERS

Jackson, MS – In an unprecedented flip flop, two members of the Mississippi Public Service Commission voted today to shift the financial risk of Mississippi Power Company’s Kemper coal plant from investors to Coastal ratepayers by overturning their own one month-old decision. Commissioners Leonard Bentz and Lynn Posey adopted language proposed by Mississippi Power that allows up to $480 million in cost overruns to be passed through to ratepayers, and forces customers to begin paying for the plant immediately, even if it never produces electricity.

Just one month before, the same two commissioners had found that the project was in the public interest only if it cost no more than $2.4 billion, and that much more information was required before customers could be charged for the costs of the plant during construction.

“This is outrageous,” said Louie Miller, state representative for the Sierra Club. “This is really a betrayal of ratepayers on a scale no one has ever seen before. They are not even making Mississippi Power say what their customers are going to wind up paying for electricity.”

Robert Wiygul of Ocean Springs, the attorney who represented the Sierra Club through the year long proceeding, noted that the two commissioners seemed to have thrown out the factual basis for their original decision just because Mississippi Power complained. “It is astonishing to see a year’s worth of hearings and investigation thrown out because the power company got upset,” Wiygul said. “The public deserves better than this.”

Northern District Commissioner Brandon Presley, who dissented from the original approval of Kemper, also dissented from the changes in the order. Commissioner Presley noted that the proposed rate impacts resulting from construction of the Kemper plant had been kept secret by Mississippi Power and Commissioners Bentz and Posey.

If Kemper goes forward, it will stand in stark contrast to current trends in the electric sector. No new coal plants have started construction in the last 18 months because of opposition to high costs, declining energy needs, and concerns about global warming pollution.
*****

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
5/26/2010
Mississippi’s vanished sacred places resurrected in photos and history
JACKSON—Lost Churches of Mississippi (University Press of Mississippi, $35, hardback) is a collection of archival photographs, postcards, and drawings of more than one hundred notable churches and synagogues fallen to fire, disaster, development, or neglect. Constructed primarily from the mid-1800s through the early 1900s, these places of worship were often among the most visually prominent and architecturally striking buildings in Mississippi. Storms, floods, tornadoes, flames, bulldozers, or the disbandment of congregations razed what once was hallowed.
In Lost Churches of Mississippi, architectural historian Richard J. Cawthon reclaims such noteworthy temples as the old St. Paul’s Catholic Church in Vicksburg, Bethel Presbyterian Church near Columbus, the old Trinity Episcopal Church in Pass Christian, and the old First Presbyterian Church in Yazoo City.
The book includes 180 distinctive black-and-white illustrations from several historical archives and other collections that represent over fifty towns and cities throughout the state. Cawthon discusses the architectural features and historical background of each house of worship and provides a brief introduction that illuminates the study of lost buildings.
Lost Churches of Mississippi rescues a cardinal legacy and recognizes a portion of the state’s rich architectural and religious heritage. The book also features a glossary of architectural terms and an annotated bibliography.
Richard Cawthon will talk about and sign copies of his new book at the time and location below

Saturday, June 5, 1 – 3 p.m. at Barnes & Noble-Gulfport
15246 Crossroads Parkway
Gulfport, MS 39503
Phone: (228) 832-8906

Richard J. Cawthon, Jackson, Mississippi, former chief architectural historian with the Mississippi Department of Archives and History, is currently a historic preservation specialist for FEMA’s Mississippi Recovery Office and works on the state’s Gulf Coast. He wrote the text for Victorian Houses of Mississippi and Historic Churches of Mississippi (University Press of Mississippi).
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For more information contact Clint Kimberling, Publicist, ckimberling@mississippi.edu
Read more about Lost Churches of Mississippi at www.upress.state.ms.us/books/1269

Mississippi Picnic in New York City’s Central Park Celebrates 31 Years of Festivities

On June 5, 2010, all things southern will invade New York City with the 31st Annual Mississippi Picnic in the Central Park East Meadow (97th Street and 5th Avenue) from noon – 6 p.m. This annual event will bring together some of the best of what Mississippi has to offer, including outstanding music, inspiring art, delicious food and, of course, a healthy dose of southern hospitality.

“The Mississippi Picnic in Central Park is a great way for Mississippians working in the New York area and native New Yorkers to enjoy a taste of Mississippi food and hospitality firsthand,” Governor Haley Barbour said. “This event has been celebrating our state’s vibrant culture and our reunion with family and friends in the Northeast for 31 years now, and this year’s picnic will provide some of the best food, music and artwork that Mississippi has to offer.”

Bring a blanket, kick back and relax as Jon Paris performs music straight from the heart of the Hospitality State.

Southern favorites fried catfish and hushpuppies will be provided by Simmons Farm Raised Catfish of Yazoo City, and McAlister’s Deli will be serving its famous sweet tea. To continue with the delicious cuisine, McAlister’s corporate Chef David Groll will be at the picnic serving up tasty desserts.

Alongside the delicious southern fare, many talented Mississippi artists will also be on hand to showcase and sell their artwork, as well as talented authors from the Magnolia State who will be signing their books. Karen Jamison, a well-known Mississippi artist, designed this year’s poster and will be on hand to sign the commemorative, limited-edition prints.

The Mississippi Picnic was born in 1979 when a small handful of native Mississippians living in New York City worked together to create an event that would highlight their state in a positive way. The result was the annual picnic that brings thousands of Mississippians together every year in New York’s Central Park and the creation of the New York Society for the Preservation of Mississippi Heritage.

For more information on this year’s event, please contact Rachel McPherson at 718.788.2988 or visit www.nymspicnic.com.

Contact: Suzanne Anderson
601.437.6393 Office
601.618.1372 Cellular
sander1@entergy.com

Grand Gulf’s Outage Marks Beginning of Historic Upgrade
17th Refueling Outage Benefits Customers and Community

Port Gibson, Miss. – As Grand Gulf Nuclear Station opened its breakers and began its 17th refueling outage earlier this month, it took its first step towards making history. While the usual work is taking place—maintenance, replacing spent fuel, troubleshooting, etc. –Grand Gulf employees are also laying the foundation for a project that will benefit customers for decades.

The project includes activities for the energy power upgrade, which will make the reactor at Grand Gulf the single most powerful nuclear generating unit in the nation. It will increase Grand Gulf’s output by approximately 178 Megawatts (MW). This is a 13 percent increase above current production levels of 1,265 MW.

Approximately 53 MW from the upgrade will directly benefit Entergy Mississippi’s customers. The additional generation will produce enough energy to power up to 53,000 more Mississippi homes.

Grand Gulf is already the most affordable source of electricity in Mississippi. It currently generates power at approximately 0.5 cent per kilowatt hour, saving Entergy Mississippi’s customers hundreds of thousands of dollars every day, depending on the price of natural gas-powered electricity. More than 60 percent of Entergy Mississippi’s power is produced using natural gas.

The company expects the influx of reliable and low-cost energy to greatly offset the initial project costs, resulting in little-to-no impact on customers’ electricity bills.

Included in the scope of work required to complete the project will be:

installation of a refurbished main generator with an uprated capacity;

replacement of the high-pressure turbine rotor with a larger unit;

upgrade of electrical equipment to accommodate increased output;

enhancement to the cooling capacity of the station;

installation of an enhanced power range neutron monitoring system;

replacement of a number of plant heat exchangers and pumps for higher capacity;

and replacement of the station’s main transformers.

Projects included within the scope of the current refueling outage include:

improving water distribution to increase cooling efficiency in the stand-by service water cooling tower;

structural and mechanical work preparing for the addition of eight cells to the auxiliary cooling tower;

key measurements taken in preparation for the planned installation of a new steam dryer;

high-precision electronic mapping of all three condensers in preparation for replacement of feedwater heaters;

and performing over twenty system and component walk downs to determine requirements for various other pieces of equipment.

Completion of the upgrade project is scheduled for late 2012 following the scheduled refueling outage in the spring.
“This upgrade will save customers money by increasing the capacity of our existing reactor,” said Randy Douet, vice president of operations at Grand Gulf. “It will assure them of having electricity available whenever they want or need it.”

In addition to the long-term benefits of the power upgrade, the outage also provides a positive short-term economic benefit to the community. Planned refueling outages call for a temporary additional workforce of approximately 1,000, all of whom need housing, meals and other essentials provided by local merchants.

“The park is now fully occupied with 32 campers each paying $119 per week,” said Cathy Dodgen, administrative assistant, Grand Gulf State Military Park. “Normally during this time of year, we have about 15 campers. We love the outage.”

Along with renting trailer space, the additional employees spend money on hotel rooms and in restaurants and at gas stations, just to mention a few of the establishments that have benefited economically from the outage.

“Year-round, Grand Gulf provides more than 700 well-paying jobs for Mississippians,” said Douet. “Through our outages, we’re proud to offer even more work opportunities that greatly benefit the economy of this area.”

Entergy Corporation is an integrated energy company engaged primarily in electric power production and retail distribution operations. Entergy owns and operates power plants with approximately 30,000 megawatts of electric generating capacity, and it is the second-largest nuclear generator in the United States. Entergy delivers electricity to 2.7 million utility customers in
Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. Entergy has annual revenues of more than $10 billion and more than 15,000 employees.

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Entergy Nuclear’s online address is entergy-nuclear.com.

International Paper Money Show in Memphis, Tennessee
June 16-20, 2010 at the Memphis Downtown Marriott Hotel and Cook Convention Center

IPMS Show will feature a grading workshop with members of PMG & PCGS for an in-depth look on how to grade. $249 admittance fee, limited attendance. American Stamp Dealers Associations are joining the show for a currency/stamp crossover. Free Educational Forums on Friday and Saturday. Show admission is $5 per family, per day. Memphis Downtown Marriott and Cook Convention Center in East Hall. Call Doug Davis at 817-723-8740 or email Lyn Knight, lyn@lynknight.com for more information. Visit the website for our International Paper Money Show at www.memphisipms.com.

Schedule of Activities for June 16-20, 2010:
Wednesday, June 16th- Grading workshop 10 am-4 pm and Charity Poker Tournament in early evening
Thursday, June 17th- Show set up begins at noon for dealers only (Professional Preview badge available to general public for $75)
Friday, June 18th- Show is open to public 9 am – 6 pm. Free educational forums.
Saturday, June 19th- Show is open to public 9 am – 6 pm. Free educational forums all day.
Sunday, June 20th- Show is open to public 9 am – 6 pm

2010 Memphis Paper Money Educational Forums
Peter Huntoon, Chairperson, 702-294-4143
peterhuntoon@embarqmail.com

A significant new attraction for the 2010 International Paper Money Show in Memphis, Tennessee, June 18-20, 2010, is a series of 50-minute presentations on all sorts of timely paper money topics. The leading experts will be there to present their latest findings. This material is fresh, and some of it is very provocative. The talks are free and operated cafeteria style; you can look over the schedule and come to any that interest you. Club meetings have been a cornerstone of the Memphis show for years and will be held on Saturday. The presentation schedule was arranged to minimize conflicts between the talks and club meetings in the same specialty.
Forum and club schedule:

Memphis Forum Series:
Friday June 18:
11 am Bernie Wilde and Greg Davis - “Census of Obsolete Proofs from the American Bank Note Company Archives”
1 pm Ray and Steve Feller – “Colorful Characters behind Paper Money from Around the World”
2 pm Larry Schuffman – “Liberty Loan Bonds of 1917-1919, Patriotism, Propaganda and Promotion”
3 pm James Simek (with Peter Huntoon) – “Everything you ever wanted to know about 1929 National Bank Note Overprints”
Saturday June 19:
10 am Joseph Boling – “Banknotes at Twenty Power”
11 am Wendell Wolka – “Weird Banking Tales from Antebellum America”
12 pm Roger Urce (with Howard Daniel) – “Ho Chi Minh Trail Scrip”
1 pm Don Kelly – “National Bank Note Survivors”
2 pm Lee Lofthus – “Large Outstanding Numbers are a Poor Indicator of National Bank Note Rarity”
3 pm Peter Huntoon (with Tom Conklin) – “Food Stamps and Coupons – Invitation to the Next Collecting Frontier”

Club meeting schedule:
Saturday June 19:
9 am Souvenir Card Collectors Society
10 am American Society of Check collectors
11 am Currency clubs of Long Island, Chester County, New England
12 pm Society of Paper Money Collectors
1 pm International Bank Note Society
2 pm Fractional Currency Collectors Board
3 pm Paper Money Collectors of Michigan
4 pm Military Money Collectors

Visit the Adjacent Postcard and Paper Show in the same location, June 18-19, 2010. The biggest and best version ever of this favorite adjunct to the International Paper Money Show. Friday, June 18th from 9 am – 6 pm. Saturday, June 19th from 9 am – 3 pm.

Members of Mississippi Press Association

Dear Editor:

It is with great pleasure; we wish to invite you for inauguration of New Indian Hindu Temple at Brandon, Mississippi.

This Temple is built with beautiful traditional Art work. This structure embodies intricate carvings displaying every aspect of Sanatan Dharma the traditional ancient Indian Religions. We the Indian Americans in Mississippi bring this gift a symbol of our most ancient tradition. This new temple represents a meeting place between the material world and the reality beyond the vision.

A group of Indian Immigrants who arrived in Mississippi in early 1960-1980 built the original structure with a vision to provide the cultural (social, religious, and educational) needs of the people. With growth nearing thousand families in their adopted land and state of Mississippi a Grand New Temple and India Heritage Center, now being inaugurated.

This structure is one of the architectural monuments in the state and being one of its kinds in Southern part of the country.

This grand celebration and inauguration will take place on May 26, 2010 at 5 PM at the temple site at 173, Vernon Jones Avenue in Brandon, MS 39047.

On behalf of Hindu Temple Society of Mississippi it will be my honor and privilege to invite you for this very important event for our community.

We look forward having you amongst us on May 26, 2010.

If you wish to visit and Tour the New Temple, please feel free to call me any time and I will arrange such a visit for your coverage. I have attached History and few pictures for your use

Warm Regards.

Dr. Sampat Shivangi
Chair, Public Relation Committee HTSM
104 Summer Lake Drive
Ridgeland, MS 30157
601-605-6036 R
601-497-2710 C
drssshivangi@aol.com

The Hindu Temple Society of Mississippi is located at 173 Vernon Jones Ave in Brandon, Mississippi and established in 1986 as a non-profit organization to promote religious, charitable and educational activities.
The Hindu community settled in Mississippi and Southeastern United States, built a 7000 sq ft. Hindu temple in Brandon (just outside of Jackson) in 1987. Since then we have made continuous improvements to the original landscape in order to incorporate the traditional architectural features of a Hindu Temple to our existing structure.

In 1995 artisans came from Andhra Pradesh, India to make transformational changes akin to original Hindu Temples in India. The addition of traditional Hindu interior and exterior ornamentations, sculptures and the Gopuram, a tower like structure and prominent architectural feature at the entrance of a Hindu Temple, display every aspect of the Hinduism religion. The improvements made to the existing structure are meant to enrich the lives of the people who practice the religion and live in the U.S.A.

The members are so impressed with the art work of the architect Mr. Thangam Subramanian of India that they decided to build an entirely new structure for the temple. The new temple construction work began in January 2006. The foundation pillars were laid in spring 2006 and foundation platform was constructed during summer 2006. Various business men, professionals mostly from Mississippi and from surrounding communities substituted funds. About $3M funds over a period of 5 years were raised to build the temple.

The building is 3500 sq ft and has 22 columns (3’ diameter) going as deep as 45 feet. The main front structure (“Rajagopuram”) is 45 feet above ground. There are 3 main temples, Lord Balaji, Shiva and Rama, and 4 sub temples 11 sub temples for demy gods and goddesses. These temples represent various cultures from India. There is a 40’ x 25’ outdoor dome and a beautifully decorated 25’ x 20’ indoor dome.
The final steps in the new temple structure are being completed. The last step is to install the deities in the new temple at the designated time and perform the various rituals for installing divinity and spiritual power into the temple. With the formal moving of the deities from the old temple into the new temple there will be a grand ceremony to re-consecrate the deities. We are now preparing for the five-day celebration of the grand opening referred as the Prana Prathishta/Kumbhabhishekam Ceremony. The priests have designated the five day period of May 22, 2010 through May 26th, 2010 as being the most favorable days to perform the extensive rituals that are necessitated for the event. More than 16 Hindu Priests have been invited for this occasion from various parts of the US and from India. The Vedic hymns, Hindu Priests chant during this ritual brings peace and harmony to the community, to our country, and to the world.

Note to Publisher/Editor: Just A Pinch Media provides a NO COST service for your newspaper that provides valuable food/cooking content each week, which can be included in a food section or special food page.

CONTACT: Nancy DeKalb
615-248-8202
ndekalb@kvbpr.com

JUST A PINCH MEDIA SERVES UP FREE WEEKLY FOOD COLUMNS, PHOTOS
TO COMPLEMENT COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER EDITORIAL CONTENT

FRANKLIN, Tenn. – April 27, 2010 – One of the best-read and most valued components of a community newspaper is recipes. Now newspaper publishers can feed their readers’ appetites with free, weekly food columns from Just A Pinch Media.
Each week, Just A Pinch Media serves up two syndicated columns and photos: Just A Pinch and Janet’s Notebook. Just A Pinch features recipes, photos and profiles of hometown cooks from across America. Janet’s Notebook focuses on behind-the-scene stories of life in the kitchen with Janet Tharpe of Franklin, Tenn. Tharpe is hostess for Just A Pinch Recipe Club a new online recipe community at www.justapinch.com.
“We believe in the importance of community journalism and the need to deliver hometown content that complements a newspaper’s editorial tone, especially in this time of tightening budgets,” said L. Daniel Hammond, CEO and founder of American Hometown Publishing and Just A Pinch Media.
Hammond also created and brought American Profile magazine to community newspapers almost a decade ago.
Publishers can sign up for distribution of the free weekly columns at www.justapinchmedia.com where they’ll also find letters to readers, house ads and other promotional materials to help introduce the food columns and Just A Pinch Recipe Club. Current and archived columns are available at the site in color or black-and- white in two-column and three-column PDF formats. Publishers may use the material as they please through the unique licensing agreement where they simply acknowledge the ownership and origin of the articles, and in return, are allowed to use them without any syndicated fee.
Members of the Just A Pinch Recipe Club online community can view and rate thousands of recipes, submit and chat about recipes, build meal plans, access grocery lists and access hundreds of free coupons from national brands like General Mills, Hershey’s, Land O Lakes and Betty Crocker.
Each week, blue ribbons are awarded to outstanding recipes on the Just A Pinch Recipe Club site. A story about blue-ribbon wins and other submissions is sent to the submitter’s hometown newspaper for publication.